A Gentlemen's Agreement, Or The Nod
by Belen09
Summary: Lieutenant Malcolm Reed is guiding 'Acting Captain' T'Pol through the damaged Enterprise . . . Major Spoiler for 'Damage', minor for 'Impulse'. Rated T because that was a dark moment in a dark episode, minor slash moment. Thank you for reading - needed to work on writer's block.


A Gentlemen's Agreement, Or The Nod

Malcolm Reed had seen old films of the devastation wrought in the 'great wars' on massive naval vessels; the exposed 'super-structures', never meant to be viewed during operations. He had thought – briefly at the time – of the conditions inside those ships, but now faced with a similar situation aboard the Enterprise, the lieutenant held to his resolve as he guided Acting Captain T'Pol around the wreckage strewn about the corridors. They were heading for Engineering . . . Major spoiler for 'Damage' and minor for 'Impulse'.

T/R, R, AU

Malcolm Reed had never thought that he would ever see the Enterprise in such a condition; panels, beams, wiring strewn across the ship's corridors – one deck totally decompressed – emergency bulkheads holding the void of space at bay. Remembered a line from an old prayer – 'the world is so big and I am so small', though in this instance the comparison was many magnitudes larger . . .

He guided the new 'Acting Captain' T'Pol through the wreckage – sparks flying from ruptured conduits, escaping vapor, exposed wires hidden by ragged metal. The path to the Engineering section was fraught with danger both expected and unexpected – the lieutenant himself was unsettled at the sight of destruction, but more distressing was the evident lack of focus on the part of the new, now Vulcan Captain.

Her normal state of composure had clearly become compromised during the attack and battle with the Reptilian Xindi ship. Reed had been totally occupied in the task of attempting to keep their ship from being destroyed, and inflicting what little damage he could in retaliation. Not that he expected T'Pol to be totally unaffected by their ordeal, nor the surprising reprieve from their fate.

But she had this disturbing 'deer caught in the headlights' look, and reviewing what he knew by personal experience regarding Vulcans, Reed wondered if their previous meeting with 'the zombie Vulcans' (as Trip phrased it) was indicative of how Vulcans in general reacted to unforeseen circumstances. If so it would go a long way in explaining their too-cautious alien allies' reaction to any kind of stimuli, whether pleasant or not and it deserved some 'consideration' . . .

Now however, the crew was under the leadership of this apparently affected individual – someone he had thought previously was rational and not prone to panic – he guided T'Pol through the maze of corridors to the hatchway entrance to Engineering. Her questions to him while they were approaching didn't seem to have the assurance of command. This was troublesome, and he needed to speak with Trip about the problem.

Immediately upon entering the more defined area, Malcolm Reed could sense a difference in the atmosphere of the area. While the Engineering section was in fact more dangerous to be physically in, there was a sense of purpose here – a guiding force if you will – intimately observing, directing, and most importantly commanding the damage control and repairs to this area. The lieutenant could feel the resolve present in the room; it was reassuring to know that even if they were 'doomed' at least they could count on the resolve of one Commander Charles Tucker the Third.

OOOOO

Commander Trip Tucker stared for just a moment at the jagged whole in the warp coil assembly where an overload caused a catastrophic breach; the only 'good' thing about the situation was that because of the location – actually before the multiplex actuator – the assembly itself was only fried and it hadn't blown up the warp reactor itself, which would have cascaded leading to the destruction of the ship in short order.

Of course, with the warp coil being this damaged and no replacement parts available, the only motive power for the ship was the impulse engine – which in effect meant that this mission had pretty much come to an end. While impulse power was 'tried and true' – it was also the reason why Cochrane's Warp Equations were so revolutionary – and Jon's dad's warp engine had come into being . . . impulse was 'slower than shit' when it came to getting anywhere . . .

He only had a couple of minutes to contemplate this unpleasant reality; his grief over the death of his old friend would have to wait – in a way he was lucky, he figured – there was always work to be done, you're mind concerned with immediate problems, the management of a quick and dirty recovery effort. (An odd memory crossed his mind, his granddad telling him about the story his granddad told him about being a fire chief during a massive earthquake north of Florida in the New Madrid Fault; that disaster was why his ancestors supposedly became engineers – civil engineers though . . . why his own father became a mechanical engineer, he never asked . . . and Trip figured now, that he never would be able to . . .

The opening of the hatch leading to Engineering distracted his attention just as he was instructing Rostov to run a manual diagnostic on the impulse secondary manifold . . . Malcolm entered the area with T'Pol in close pursuit. Both officers were covered in soot and grime, and Trip remembered with a tired jolt, that there had been reports of isolated fires on the bridge. He supposed that they were taking a survey of the damage to the ship, and had come down to see Engineering . . . after all the com system was down.

He had just begun to explain their situation, when chaos erupted – partially damaged systems not being able to handle increased power apparently . . . Tucker stated without exaggeration that Engineering was not a safe place to be at the moment, and Malcolm, who could normally be relied upon to be bitingly sarcastic under stress, spoke quietly of the ship already having lost one captain today – they didn't need to lose another . . .)

And suddenly Trip realized that T'Pol was – for whatever reason – hardly in any condition to command. He watched as she turned away . . . and the look on Malcolm Reed's face caught his eye. The man nodded – no words were spoken – as his one-time partner, Trip could see the tension acknowledged on his face. They would need to talk in private later.

OOOOO

Malcolm Reed gave a brief but definite nod to Trip Tucker; no matter what the outcome the two of them would make sure that the Enterprise would be commanded as best possible as long as either one of them lived . . .


End file.
